Indian edtech giant Byju’s missed own revenue projections in FY21 • TechCrunch

Byju’s clocked a revenue of $305.6 million in the financial year that ended in March 2021, below its own projections, the Indian edtech giant disclosed in audited results Wednesday, following an 18-month delay that attracted scrutiny from lawmakers and local authority.

The Bengaluru-headquartered startup, India’s most valuable, reported a loss of $577.4 million in the aforementioned financial year, up from $32.9 million of FY20, it said.

Byju’s has publicly said in media interviews and other public appearances that it was on track to clock as high as $1 billion in revenue in the financial year ending in March 2021. In an interview with TechCrunch, Byju’s founder Byju Raveendran said those projections were for the calendar year 2021 and some 40% of FY21 revenue — because of the period of consumption and credit sales duration — were deferred to the subsequent year.

The startup said it generated a gross revenue of $1.258 billion in the financial year that ended in March this year. Between April and July, the startup logged a revenue of $570 million, it said. “Even in the last 12 months, not a single investor of ours sold their stake,” he said. “Investors are relieved and happy.”

Raveendran attributed the delay in filing the audited accounts to Covid and complexity of accounting numerous acquisitions it undertook last year. “The auditors had to do a lot of additional work. That is the reason why audit got delayed,” he said.

The startup, which is valued at over $22 billion, is also unlikely to go public this year. Raveendran said Byju’s is watching the macro market conditions closely and will file for an IPO in nine to 12 months. “I don’t think the markets will turn this year,” he said.

Byju’s is also looking to close a new funding round within weeks, he said. The startup is in advanced stages to raise funding from sovereign funds that are looking to double down, he said. The company has made a bid to acquire U.S. edtech firm 2U, he confirmed.

This is a developing story. More to follow…